Bill Text: NJ SR88 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges PANYNJ to improve conditions for port truckers that operate in port facilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-06-02 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Transportation Committee [SR88 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-SR88-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator EDWARD DURR
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Urges PANYNJ to improve conditions for port truckers that operate in port facilities.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to improve conditions for the port truckers that operate in port facilities.
Whereas, The Port of New York and New Jersey, which is operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (port authority) and is the largest port on the East coast, is considered the gateway to the one of the most concentrated consumer markets in North America with 72 percent of consumer goods shipped to or from the East coast traveling through the port; and
Whereas, The port, which encompasses several port facilities, including the Port Newark, Elizabeth Port Authority Marine Terminal, Port Jersey Port Authority Marine Terminal, Howland Hook Marine Terminal and Brooklyn Port Authority Marine Terminal, has faced backlogs that have been exacerbated by supply chain shortages; and
Whereas, As a result of backlogged port facilities, many port truckers, or tractor trailer operators who transport the containers unloaded from container cargo vessels, regularly face long wait times and have been required to idle for hours outside of port facilities with lines as long as five miles and wait times up to eight hours long; and
Whereas, Many port truckers have seen the waiting conditions to pick up cargo grow increasingly uncomfortable as many port facilities do not have bathroom facilities for port truckers, do not allow port truckers to exit their cabs while waiting in line, and do not have emergency exits at the port facilities to allow port truckers to depart the line in the event of an emergency; and
Whereas, At certain port facilities, specifically the Port of Elizabeth, emergencies can result in major penalties, as a port trucker has the potential to be suspended from loading and unloading at the facility for two weeks if a port trucker suffers an emergency that requires them to leave their cab; and
Whereas, Such violations systems, including the system at the Port of Elizabeth, are enforced without any due process or right of appeal for the port truckers; and
Whereas, These violation systems are particularly troubling as they jeopardize the livelihood of many port truckers, who are paid by the load or terminal container, by preventing them access to the port facility and thereby preventing them from making a livelihood; and
Whereas, It incumbent on the port authority to offer restrooms for port truckers, create well-labeled emergency exits at port facilities, and amend the violations systems at port facilities to provide for actual due process and rights to appeal for port truckers; and
Whereas, As approximately 85 percent of the goods that move through the Port of New York and New Jersey are transported by truck, the port authority is the entity that is required to improve the conditions for the port truckers, who keep the economy of the region and nation moving; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House urges the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to improve conditions for the port truckers that operate in port facilities by providing restrooms, creating well-labeled emergency exits at port facilities, and amending the violations systems at port facilities to provide for actual due process and rights to appeal for port truckers.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Governor of the State of New Jersey, the Governor of the State of New York, the Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
STATEMENT
This resolution urges the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to improve conditions for the port truckers that operate in port facilities by providing restrooms, creating well-labeled emergency exits at port facilities, and amending the violations systems at port facilities to provide for actual due process and rights to appeal.
